FAQs : for health care administrators
-
How can my community create something like MCHCC?
Maple City Health Care Center cannot be franchised or copied because we are the result of a unique (particular) collaboration with our community. We believe, however, that our mistakes and successes may help your collaboration with your community. We offer this web site with the hope that our journey, our experiment, will benefit yours.
-
How did MCHCC get started?
In 1988, people from our neighborhood worked with a doctor (James Nelson Gingerich) to establish the Center.
-
How does MCHCC handle EMR (electronic medical records)?
We use software called eClinicalWorks. We converted to eClinicalWorks in November 2007. Call us if you need specific information that you cannot find on our web site.
-
How does MCHCC recruit and retain staff?
We often build jobs around people who feel a strong connection with our mission (as opposed to "filling" a job description). People who come to work for us often discover new skills and interests and we seek to change their job accordingly. We retain staff through our values -- empowerment, relationships, and integration. Staff loyalty comes from the satisfaction and health that these values bring.
-
How do sliding fees work?
We inform each patient about the sliding fee program. Patients may apply for sliding fees by providing an indication of their income. We review a patient's income annually.
-
How is MCHCC different from a private practice?
We are incorporated as a non-profit. Our Board (mostly patients) "owns" the Center.
-
How is MCHCC funded?
We earn about 70% of our income from what patients and insurance (including Medicaid) pay. The remaining 30% comes from grants and donations.
-
What are sliding fees?
Our mission is to build a health community by providing affordable high quality health care. Sliding fees adjust the cost of health care to a patient's income (ability to pay). Patients pay anywhere from 100% to 10% of the cost of their health care. Patients who cannot afford to pay even 10% of the cost of their health care may volunteer for community-building organizations in exchange for health care (see the More Than Money program).
-
What challenges does MCHCC face?
The major challenges we face are: